Can Final Cut Pro X burn a dvd that is viewable by any dvd player?

I found the user manual and, according to that, yes, you can burn to a DVD

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4681

Screenshot:

I have not used FCP X, so I cannot speak from experience.

As for iMovie, if you simply use the Share > Export movie, no, there are no options to burn it so it can be read on a DVD player. However, if you choose Export using Quicktime and then use advanced settings and then options, you can export to a file that can be burned to a DVD playable in any player - you will need burn software however. I use these settings when I export:

The other option is to hunt around for an old version of iLife on DVD that has iDVD. These are getting scarcer so it might not be possible anymore but is worth a shot.

And if the only reason you would purchase Final Cut is to be able to burn video DVD's I'd look at things like Toast first. Less expensive and if you're using iMove Final Cut will be redundant.

Babowa - Are you saying that if you export through QuickTime from iMovie you can produce a .img file? If that is the case (and I'm surprised to hear it if it is) then the OP could burn the .img file to a DVD using Disk Utility which would let it play on a regular DVD player.

Babowa - Are you saying that if you export through QuickTime from iMovie you can produce a .img file? If that is the case (and I'm surprised to hear it if it is) then the OP could burn the .img file to a DVD using Disk Utility which would let it play on a regular DVD player.

No - the result is a .mov file (I exported a sample to show):

I have never tried to or actually used DU or Finder to burn a video because I have always had both iDVD and Roxio Toast. I do not know if DU is capable of burning a video that can be played on a DVD player - from what I've seen, it cannot. As far as I know, it can only play on a Mac, not a standalone DVD player.

My workflow is: edit movie in iMovie HD (yes, very old version - as it is the only iMovie version that will process my HD content losslessly); create portions and/or trailer in the latest iMovie, create slideshows in Photo to Movie, and create layered intro/transition videos with Final Cut Express and LiveType. Assemble all in iMovie HD, export with above settings. Drag into iDVD and create appropriate and customized menus, intros, etc. When finished, burn (professional settings) to a Video_TS folder (since that includes all files and can be archived on an external for future use) and then use Toast to burn.

@ gwtch:

FWIW, Final Cut has somewhat of a learning curve; for now iLife 11 can still be found and I'd recommend getting it - there is nothing like iDVD to make your "masterpiece" look professional with the customizable menus with music, etc. Just found it here (there are others):

http://www.lacomputercompany.com/cgi-bin/rpcart/index.cgi?command=listitems&type =group&group=soft

If it is a .mov file then it is not in the correct format to create a video DVD.

have never tried to or actually used DU or Finder to burn a video because I have always had both iDVD and Roxio Toast. I do not know if DU is capable of burning a video that can be played on a DVD player - from what I've seen, it cannot. As far as I know, it can only play on a Mac, not a standalone DVD player.

Finder will not burn a video disk, you cannot burn a .img file to DVD using Finder and have it play in a DVD player.

However Dusk Utility will do this. If you have a .img file (the output of programs like iDVD) you can use Disk Utility to create a video DVD. The only caveat is if you are burning a dual layer disk. Disk Utility will not put the layer break in correctly so the disk won;t work.

regards

However Dusk Utility will do this. If you have a .img file (the output of programs like iDVD)

Are you referring to the files contained within the VIDEO_TS folder?

Or what file output would you be referring to?

The .img file. The file produced by iDVD, for example, if you save it's output instead of burning immediately.

Keep the iMovie that came with your system and just take iDVD off the iLife boxed DVD.

iMovie will render the video shot with your camera just fine The quality will be as good as you can get.

Regards

I can't help with your question re. sharing your movies online because I absolutely refuse to post any of my work/content online since people wantonly download everything. Although one question would be: why does the highest quality matter on Youtube? The result will not only depend on the quality of the content, but also to a great extent to the quality of the monitor the viewer is using. I do agree that you want the highest quality when burning to a DVD - I believe Final Cut is less "destructive" to your content than the newer versions of iMovie. If you do export from whichever software you will be using, use the H.264 compression, it is the most "lossless" method. Also consider the size: videos shot in 1080p consume an absolutely astounding number of GB; whereas 720p is much smaller and therefore easier to work with and I, for one, cannot tell the difference on my HDTV.

Final Cut is not a "beginner" type movie editing software. It does have a learning curve and is more of a pro-sumer type of video editing app. As for iMovie: be aware that it cannot read any content that is shot in 60 fps (but, I believe, Final Cut can). I don't know what the specs are for your camera, but since it's a Canon, it should be fine (most of their models are). Some Canon's throw a fit when you try to import from them while plugged in directly; if yours uses an SDHC (or similar) card, simply take out the card and plug it into a card reader - that is what I do.

Having said all that, yes, do install iDVD. Then start with a very simple 30 second test movie and experiment with it with iMovie and/or FCP If you decide to get it, then run it through iDVD and see what you can do there. Finally, waste a DVD and burn it to see if you like the result.

You can burn DVDs from FCPX.

no computer can do what

some older dvd players only support the

dvd-r media

some only the

dvd+r media

not sure which of the std's for burning dvd's won that war think it was +r

I've had and still have several DVD players and the newer ones (and all but the most "simplistic" = cheap) do read both -R and +R. My elderly neighbor had an old cheap model and I would have to purchase -R DVDs if I wanted him to have a copy of my movie.

I just checked my very cheap (newer) $32 Magnavox DVD player used mostly to test and check my just burned DVDs and it will read any DVD which is properly encoded as a Video (and it does since I've tried it with both -R and +R). Other than Video DVD, it will read -R and -RW DVDs.

The DVDs produced by Final Cut Pro are very, very, simple.

I would do my DVD burning with iDVD. It is readily available on disk from Amazon and eBay. Just purchase iLife 09 and you will find iDVD 09.

It works perfectly on the newest Macs as well as Mavericks. Shocking it was discontinued by Apple.

I have never read the manual to iDVD, yet I can produce DVDs almost as good as Hollywood.

gwtch wrote:

My iMac is a 2011 version and built in August of 2012. It's the iMac prior to the newest model. It has Mountain Lion.

I'm considering purchasing Final Cut Pro X. Can I burn a dvd that is viewable via any typical dvd player? Or do I need another editing program. I have burned dvds from iMovie and they can be replayed on my iMac but not on any non-mac dvd player.

Any thoughts? Thank you,

David

iDVD works as suggested with some nice menu options.

Share from a FCP X as a Maser File then use the Master File in iDVD.

FCP X can Share direct to DVD but menu structure is limited, quality is good.

Al